1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to packaging, and more particularly to a package and packaging system for storing and displaying goods for sale, specifically intimate apparel, in retail stores.
2. Description of Related Art
Retail packaging for intimate or personal apparel, such as men's, women's and children's underwear and swimwear, has in the past been provided in variations of two basic designs: (1) a box, usually having a body made of cardboard or opaque plastic, having an aperture which provides a window to the interior; and (2) a base box covered by a separate lid.
In the first type of package, the aperture or window is usually covered by attaching a piece of clear plastic film or forming to the interior of the container, an assembly requiring a complicated and costly manufacturing process. Use of an adhesive to attach the clear plastic likely renders the package non-recyclable. While the opaque body allows space for product identification (i.e., graphics), too often the product itself is poorly shown, leading customers to open the box to get a better look at what they are buying.
The lid of the second type of packaging can be made of transparent plastic, but being the top of the package and usually the prime location for a label, easy viewing of the package's interior is often obscured. The two-piece construction is also costly, as it requires separate manufacture of the lid and box and laborious assembly thereof. Further, the lid may need to be manually taped to the base box to keep it in place.
Three critical pieces of information must be communicated to the consumer at retail: (1) the pattern and color of the garments; (2) the number of garments that are in the package; and (3) the size of the garments that are in the package. If any of these pieces of information are not visually apparent by a mere inspection of the package, the consumer, often mistrusting of mere graphical information, will open the box to inspect the goods herself.
Unfortunately, both of the above-described prior art packaging variations for intimate apparel do not visually communicate this information very well and, in addition, are easily openable. While possibly damaging the package, easy opening thereof also permits switching or simple pilfering of the product. For instance, if the intimate apparel comprises an assortment of differently colored men's briefs, a person may prefer one color rather than another. If the package is easily openable, selected briefs can be transferred to a single package. This leaves behind a lesser selection for the next customer, resulting in the likelihood that the package will not be bought. It eventually will be considered as "damaged goods" by the store manager to be returned to the manufacturer or disposed of.
Also, when a package having a plurality of products therein is easily openable, such as the above example of a plurality of men's briefs, one brief can be removed from the package, stuffed into a pocket or bag, and stolen. The package left behind is defective, and, again, eventually becomes "damaged goods", to say nothing of the loss of stolen merchandise.
Further, opening the package often damages the package itself, and since most people are reluctant to buy intimate apparel which have been previously opened (even when they were the first to open it), the package and product become "damaged goods" which are no longer salable. The removal of "damaged goods" is a major source of financial loss for the store and the manufacturer. In the first place, the value of the product, including the costs of its manufacture, shipping, and handling, is lost, since the expense of returning the damaged goods to the manufacturer may be more than the product is worth. Also, someone must be paid to file the necessary paperwork crediting the store for the value of the damaged goods and to physically remove the product. Even further costs are incurred due to the time it takes for personnel, both the store's and manufacturer's, to process the paperwork.
Another drawback of previous packages is that the product is often merely stuffed therein, or restuffed by an inquisitive potential customer, thereby wrinkling clothes or possibly damaging other, more solid items.
In addition, most boxboard packages require an "add on" plastic hook for attaching the package to a merchandising peg rack for display and dispensing. To avoid this purchase and/or labor expense, many manufacturers attempt to die cut, score and fold the top flap of the box to try and incorporate a hook, but such constructions have proven to be ineffective.
A still further drawback of the prior art packaging for intimate apparel is that the boxes are geometrically indistinguishable from one another. That is, the boxes of the prior art are all rectangular solids, and information concerning the brand, varied styles, fabric content and sizes must be printed on each box. This makes it difficult for non-English speaking customers, as well as those customers unfamiliar with the product category, to select what they want, leading to more boxes being opened prior to purchase. Since the boxes are geometrically indistinguishable, many customers pick up several boxes to choose from, and after selecting one will likely place the remaining boxes back on the dispensing display at a random location, making it difficult to keep any semblance of order on the retail shelf. It also makes it much more difficult for stockkeeping personnel, who possibly may not be fluent in English, or familiar with the products' variations, to maintain the stock at the retail level, since it is far too easy to mix up boxes which only differ by what's printed on them.